The Elder Justice Act

While there’s been surprisingly little research investigating the incidence of neglect and abuse in residential long-term care, the few recent studies that have been conducted suggest that the problem persists. In the 2000 Atlanta Long Term Care Ombudsman Program study, for example, 44% of residents reported that they had been abused.

Even one facility that fails to address and take steps to prevent neglect and abuse of its residents is too many. That’s one of the many reasons the American Geriatrics Society, AARP, and other organizations are endorsing the Elder Justice Act, legislation that proposes a comprehensive approach to combating and preventing elder abuse, neglect and exploitation—not only in long-term care, but in all settings.

“The problem of elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation has long been invisible and is among the most serious issues facing seniors and their families,” says Sen. Orrin Hatch (R- UT), who, with Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-AR), proposed the legislation in the Senate this year. The Senate Finance Committee unanimously approved the act this summer, sending it to the Senate floor. Rep. Peter King (R-NY) has proposed the legislation in the House.

The Elder Justice Act would, among other things, promote coordination of federal, state and local efforts to address elder neglect and abuse; fund research on comprehensive approaches to enhance detection and prevention; and support development of a uniform system to collect data on elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation nationwide.

While the bill doesn’t focus exclusively on long-term care facilities, it does include provisions addressing long-term care in particular. These include provisions to:

• Establish a panel on combating neglect and abuse—including abuse of one resident by another—in long-term care
• Offer grants to encourage qualified applicants to pursue careers in long-term care and to develop benefits and other programs to improve staff training and retention, including loan-forgiveness programs for long-term care workers who remain in the field for more than five years
• Require long-term care facilities to report, to both law enforcement officials and regulators, any crimes that occur in their facilities within 24 hours, and to immediately report any crimes causing injuries
• Add information on criminal violations by nursing facilities and employees to “Nursing Home Compare,” the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ website designed to help older adults and their loved ones compare nursing homes
• Provide grants to expand federal and state long-term care ombudsman programs aimed at preventing and responding to complaints of elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation

These measures are key steps in protecting some of our most vulnerable citizens from neglect, abuse, and exploitation. They’re good for older adults, and they’re good for long-term care.